Brechin line fails in its multi-million bid to secure Government funding

THE Caledonian Railway at Brechin has expressed disappointment that its £9.6 million bid for grant aid from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund has not been approved by Angus Council.

The £4.8 billion fund was set up to support local authorities, with aims to boost productivity, pay, jobs, and living standards by growing the private sector, particularly in areas where these lag behind the rest of the country. It also aims to reduce geographic inequality in terms of available funding.

A total of £120 million was available to the Angus region.

Despite halving its original bid for funding, the railway’s attempt to convince councillors to reverse a earlier decision not to ask the Government for the requested grant aid failed at a special Angus Council meeting on July 21.

Angus Provost Brian Boyd ruled that there had not been a material change in the circumstances of the railway’s bid for it to be reconsidered.

The railway had proposed several projects that would have used the skills and expertise of its volunteers to support council objectives. They included an active travel route to improve public transport links through Angus and within Brechin, the reinstatement of Brechin turntable, the creation of event space and a museum inside Brechin steam shed, a Brechinbased bus/coach facility to boost tourism, plus maintenance, training, and green energy development facilities.

The funding would have covered the replacement of the Bog Road overbridge, which has been subject to a weight restriction for many years and which is said to be in need of replacement.

A statement from the railway said: “These would have provided immediate community benefit at a time when residents are suffering from one of the worst increases in the cost of living, resulting in increased local deprivation.

“Conservative estimates, based on Government models, expected this to bring a further £20 million per year into Angus, as well as securing and creating immediate employment in the area.

“We are not giving up and are continuing to try and find ways to deliver these projects.”